Health officials say he might have been exposed to Yersinia pestis while camping in Rio Arriba County in northern New Mexico.
The patient likely contracted plague from a flea bite while camping near South Lake Tahoe.
Distinct from the strain that caused bubonic plague, this type circulated throughout Eurasia during the Late Neolithic Bronze Age.
The case was confirmed in January last year—by far the earliest ever recorded in a calendar year in Oregon.
Officials also said the overall risk to the public is low.
Plague was detected in the 5,000-year-old DNA of at least 17% of the sampled population across large geographic distances.
A consortium announces the launch of a $57 million project to test inhaled and nasal vaccines with a goal of stopping infection from SARS-CoV-2 and other coronaviruses.
As small clusters continue, the CDC notes that only 1 in 4 eligible people have received both mpox vaccine doses.
Health officials urged residents to report the disappearance of prairie dog colonies and to avoid exposure to the animals.
A woman and her husband and daughter have all been infected, likely with bubonic plague.
